1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to portable apparatus for carrying ski equipment, and more particularly, to portable apparatus for carrying both ski boots and skis.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Ski equipment is inherently unwieldy and inconvenient to transport and store, since skis are long and heavy and difficult to handle. Ski poles are also long and difficult to handle; ski boots are quite heavy and bulky, and ski gloves and goggles are easily misplaced and lost. Due to the completely different sizes, weights and configurations of the above items, it is very difficult for a skier to carry such items along with other items useful to skiers (such as baggage containing skiiing apparel and personal items) from an automobile to a ski lodge. It is also difficult for skiers to carry the above items to a ski slope which may be distant from a ski lodge or an automobile parking area.
Modern ski lodges are frequently large, luxurious establishments having ski lockers, restaurant facilities, cocktail lounges and the like, as well as lodging facilities. Such modern ski lodges are frequently very crowded during the skiing season. An important aspect of the activities at modern ski lodges frequently includes afternoon and evening socializing after a skier spends the earlier part of a day on the ski slopes. A skier may return directly from the ski slopes wearing his skiing apparel and carrying his skiing equipment. He or she may desire to go directly to a cocktail lounge or restaurant or the like without changing clothes or unloading his or her ski equipment in a ski locker or in the trunk of a distant automobile. The problems of transporting and/or temporarily storing bulky, unwieldy ski equipment in the course of the above described activities is a frequent source of inconvenience and irritation to skiers.
In order to help a skier overcome the above problems, a variety of ski equipment carrying devices have been devised. Various bags and straps have been devised for carrying ski boots and items of ski apparel, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,587,951, 3,749,323 and U.S. Pat. No. Des. 199,296. However, the devices disclosed therein only solve part of the problem, since they are unsuitable for carrying skis and ski poles. Ski boot trees for carrying ski boots have also been devised. U.S. Pat. No. 3,297,219 discloses such a device; U.S. Pat. No. 3,909,718 shows a similar device adapted for carrying ice skates. Such devices are unsuitable for carrying skis and ski poles, and therefore do not solve the problem of inconvenience caused by bulky, unwieldy ski equipment. Various portable holders and carriers have been devised for carrying skis and associated bindings and ski poles, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,877,623, 3,921,871 and 4,002,277. However, none of the devices disclosed therein include means for carrying ski boots. U.S. Pat. No. 3,718,242 discloses a ski equipment carrier adapted to carry a pair of skis, a pair of ski poles, and a pair of ski boots. The disclosed device therein includes a boot tree section removably suspended by means of a hook attached to the bottom of a ski carrier section. The ski carrier section includes a pair of panels suspended from a handle. A pair of rubber straps are attached to one edge of the respective panels and are also attached (at their opposite ends) to latch elements disposed at opposite edges of the respective panels. The rubber straps are stretched around the ski poles and skis, each rubber strap binding a ski pole and a ski against a respective one of the suspended panels. Each latch element is hooked to the corresponding latch element attached to the upper end of one of the suspended panels. The device described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,718,242 suffers from the shortcoming that it is quite unwieldy to use. If it is temporarily placed on a floor (for example in a lobby or a cocktail lounge at a ski lodge) the ski carrier section will flop sideways and probably become unhooked from and separated from the boot tree. Thus, it can be seen that the device is not truly a single, integral unit. If the ski holder section does not become unhooked, its flopping will cause the boot tree to fall on its side. Deploying of the disclosed latch elements and rubber straps to separately attached each ski pole and ski against one of the suspended panels is an unwieldy and inconvenient task, especially if performed on a ski slope under cold weather conditions. The user would probably have to remove his ski gloves and subject his hands to the cold and wind to deploy the ski equipment carrier of U.S. Pat. No. 3,718,242. The device also has the shortcoming that a ski pole and a ski bound by a single strap are likely to become skewed if the end of the ski pole brushes against an object which deflects it from its weakly maintained position parallel to the lower edge of the adjacent ski. The ski equipment carrier therefore is not suitable for carrying a combination of long skis and short poles, since the baskets of the ski poles must be placed beyond an end of the ski with which the ski pole is bound. In short, the device shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,718,242 is itself an unwieldy combination of two separate units which are merely hooked together. It does not meet the needs of a modern skier. There is clearly an unmet need for a rigid, self-contained device capable of carrying a pair of skis and ski poles and a pair of ski boots. The device should be easily deployable to load and unload the skis, ski poles and ski boots and should be useful for temporarily storing the equipment therein in an orderly fashion.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a rigid, self-contained carrier for skis, ski poles, and ski boots, which carrier can be conveniently carried in one hand by a skier.
Another object of the invention is to provide a carrier for skis, ski poles and ski boots, which carrier can be placed on a flat surface so as to occupy minimum space with minimum danger of being tipped over and minimum danger of separation of skis and ski boots.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a carrier for skis, ski poles and ski boots wherein the skis, ski poles, and ski boots can be easily loaded and unloaded by a skier with gloved hands.